How to Get Sharpie Off of a Fridge

Accidents happen.

Whether those accidents are the result of accidentally on purpose, a misunderstanding of instructions, or through horseplay doesn’t matter. You now have a sharpie situation to take care of.

Permanent markers marking up your fridge are not the end of the world. With the right ingredients, cleaners, and cleaning supplies, you can remove those sharpie marks and forget they were ever there.

To find out how to do that, just continue to read our article as it has the instructions you need to get the job done correctly.

How to Clean Up Those Sharpie Marks

The good news is that you have several options at your disposal to handle this situation. The hardest part you may have is deciding which technique will work best on your fridge. Here are 6 techniques you can try in your home:

Erase Those Marks

Like a pencil, there are erasers that can actually remove sharpie marks. These dry erasers work on the same principle as a pencil eraser, and you just simply rub the mark till it is gone.

While they are called dry erasers, there is a rubbing alcohol compound inside that loosens the marks up so you can wipe them away with a paper towel or cloth. The trick is to find the eraser that matches the color of the sharpie that made the marks.

Rubbing Alcohol

There is no need to run out to the store and get a dry eraser if you have rubbing alcohol in your home already. Just go to the cabinet where the solution is and bring it back to your kitchen.

Pour a little of this alcohol on a sponge, cloth, or paper towel, and working from the outside in, wipe the stain away. You do not work from the inside out as that motion has a tendency to spread the ink further. Keep using clean surfaces on the cleaning cloths, etc. until the mark is gone.

Erase Those Marks 2

There is another type of eraser that will help you erase those marks away. They are made from melamine foam and are made under different brand names. Just wet the foam according to the directions on the package and rub the mark off.

It is possible to use an art gum eraser to do this task if you do not have one of these wet erasers handy. Do a little experimenting to see which one works the best for you.

Hairspray Is A Good Option

There are some types of sharpie permanent markers whose ink is vulnerable to hairspray. The process is quite simple, just spray over the mark, and you can be liberal about spraying, then let it soak for about a minute or two.

When that time has elapsed, grab a paper towel or a clean cloth and catch any of the drips that may come from over spraying. Then wipe the area and rinse with soapy water. If the first attempt is not successful, repeat the process until the marks are gone.

Try Toothpaste

Since toothpaste is a non-abrasive cleanser, it is a handy little option to have in your anti-sharpie arsenal. Just do not use the gel formula type of toothpaste. Instead, use a paste that has baking soda as an ingredient.

Cover the marks with the toothpaste then put some baking soda on a soft, damp cloth. Next, wipe the toothpaste covered marks with the cloth, and you can use a sponge if you want until it gets too dirty.

After that, rinse the cloth and wipe again. This technique may also take several attempts to get your fridge clean.

Then There Is Cooking Oil

When all else fails or you do not have the other options handy, you can turn to cooking oil. This is a very non-abrasive cleanser and all you need is a little on a clean cloth. When you have put the oil on the cloth, simply rub the cloth over the mark.

Don’t be stingy and when you are done rubbing, wait a while until the oil has soaked in a little bit. Wipe the oil away then rinse with some soapy water. There are some commercial products like adhesive removing oils which come under different brand names you can try also.

Just make sure all the products you try are safe to use on your particular model of fridge.

Getting the sharpie marks off only takes a few minutes. With the above ingredients and techniques, you should not have a lot of problems removing those marks. Be careful though as some of those solutions will not work on fake stainless-steel fridges.